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Tuesday, October 27, 2015

A Different Kind of Halloween...Donna F. Crow

Do you want a Halloween Treat? Well, I have a good one for you today. Donna Fletcher Crow shares a taunting post and some excerpts from her book, A Newly Crimsoned Reliquary. Ms. Crow tells us a bit about her heroine and sets the stage for the spooky events that follow! If you like mystery, you will love this one! Welcome back to More Agreeably Engaged, Ms. Crow. The first time that you visited was April 23, 2013, when you were here to tell us about A Jane Austen Encounter. By the way, I loved that book and if any of you have not read it, I highly recommend it! Okay, back to the present, it is so good to have you here again and to read about this fascinating murder mystery. It definitely has me in the mood for Halloween! :) ~~~~~~~~~~

No, this scene from A
Newly Crimsoned Reliquary, the latest in my series The Monastery Murders,
is a modern day service for All Souls’ Day in a thoroughly orthodox church in
Oxford, England.

My heroine Felicity Howard,
a young American woman who is studying theology in a monastery in England, has
gone to Oxford to translate
an ancient document in a convent. That should be a harmless enough venture, but
Felicity just can’t seem to avoid danger. It’s hardly Felicity’s fault, though,
that severed body parts start showing up in ancient holy reliquaries. Or that
Felicity and one of the nuns is assaulted.

Then Antony, Felicity’s
Church History lecturer and fiancé, arrives in Oxford with a group of students
and Felicity experiences a Halloween like she has never known before—first with
the police and then in the emergency room getting her head bandaged. Late that
night she realizes it is Halloween and recalls her childhood trick-or-treating
with her brothers.

But there’s nothing so
light-hearted for Felicity this year. The next day she and Antony go to an All
Saints’ service where Antony preaches the homily:

“Here, in these days dedicated to
All Saints and to All Souls we have time set aside for remembering the dead,
and contemplating our own deaths. We are given time to deal with the reality of
death—our own, as well as the death of others. In these days we are to bring
death and the dead into the light; to mourn, but not to despair; even more to
celebrate what needs to be celebrated. Most of all we are to see life as a gift
and death as a new beginning.”

Nice words, but Felicity is
mourning too many losses to be comforted. And then the next day’s All Souls’ observance
turns even more somber. Earlier in the day Felicity had climbed the bell tower
to help muffle the bells (a scene I based somewhat on my own daughter’s
muffling bells for All Souls’ when a student at Oxford). Later in the evening a
depressed Felicity listens to the tolling of the muffled bells:

And
then the tolling stopped. Felicity shivered and entered the church, drawn
forward by the minor key of the organ prelude that so suited her mood. She
slipped into an empty seat, choosing not to sit with her friends. She would
experience this on her own. A service for the Dead—for all who had died, for
all who would die. As she would some day.

On
the altar ochre-colored unbleached beeswax candles stood in dark wooden
candlesticks on a black altar cloth. Was this the source of the tradition of
decorating in orange and black for Halloween, Felicity wondered.

But
a far more stunning symbol stood in the center of the aisle before the altar
rail. A catafalque draped with a black pall and flanked with six massive
candlesticks bearing again the unbleached, dull orange candles. She knew the
coffin was empty. Still, the imagery of death was overpowering, increasing the
weight on her spirit.

The
clergy entered robed in black vestments, and the introit began, “Rest eternal
grant unto them, O Lord… Unto thee shall all flesh come…” The earthy scent of
the incense added to the sense of solemnity and mystery. Felicity could almost
see the souls of the departed ascending as the wisps of smoke floated upward as
to heaven.

Then
the organ began the urgent, driving rhythm of the Dies Irae. At first the melody was
everything, then the vigor and intensity of the choir penetrated Felicity’s
consciousness and she found herself translating the Latin text as they sang: Day of wrath, day of anger… the world
dissolves in ashes… Sound of the trumpet summoning souls before the throne of
God… All creation arise again. The sequence left her feeling weak, yet
strangely invigorated with its picture of violent horror ending in triumph.

Then
the priest changed his chasuble for a flowing black cope and processed to the
catafalque, to stand at the foot of the bier. “The sorrow of death compassed
me.”

A
prayer for mercy and forgiveness followed. Then, while the cantor chanted, “Libera me, Domine…” The black-vested
priest moved around the catafalque, sprinkling it with holy water. “Deliver me
O Lord, from death eternal, in that day tremendous when the earth must pass
away…”

The
priest completed his circuit, then took up the thurible and began another
round, incensing the casket. “Deliver me when thou shalt come to judge the
world… Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy.”

Still
in the grip of the experience, Felicity remained in her seat as the candles
were extinguished and the congregation moved toward the door. Then, from the
tower over her head, as if from heaven, the peal began. Focusing on the muffled
bells, she went out into the darkness of the night.

***

Not the All Hallows’ Eve most of
us are likely to experience, but an appropriate prelude to the killing to
follow— after all, the book is a murder mystery. Who will be the next
victim of the murderer stalking the shadows of Oxford’s hallowed shrines?

A Newly Crimsoned
Reliquary is a gripping contemporary suspense story set against
the background of Oxford’s rich history. Could the Medieval Latin document
Felicity is translating for the good sisters at the Convent of the Incarnation
have anything to do with the repeated attacks?
The latest in Donna Fletcher Crow’s
popular Monastery Murders series. Follow Donna onFacebook.

You do have a way with murder mysteries, I must say, Donna Fletcher Crow! I love your writing as it is always obvious that you have done your research and have spent time in the surroundings of your story. You have that first-hand knowledge that is evident in your descriptions. (decided I should not say 'writing' when speaking of first-hand knowledge since this a murder mystery! lol) Thank you, Donna, for being my guest again. It is a pleasure! (I would love to know where your picture was taken. I like the Celtic cross in the picture with you.)

There is a giveaway and it is international. One eBook of A Newly Crimsoned Reliquary, is up the treat, and not a trick, for one lucky reader. Please leave a comment and your contact info to be entered. The giveaway ends at 11:59 PM the 30th of October, just in time for a spooky Halloween! Good luck to all!

Hi Patty! I hope you will read some of the books by Donna Fletcher Crow. She is an excellent writer and her books are hard to put down. You should read A Jane Austen Encounter too. I loved it and plan to write a review for it one of these days! :)

I have several of Donna's books and love them. They move quickly and the characters are appealing to me. I don't know if spooky is my preference, but I'm 100% certain that if written by Donna, it's a winner.

J Dawn--What a delight to see you here! Thank you so much for your vote of confidence. I recently heard from a reader who has loved my historical novels, but resisted reading a murder mystery--she read A JANE AUSTEN ENCOUNTER and loved it, she said, "I should have trusted you not to get gruesome."

Oh, Joy, I don't think you would be bothered by Donna's 'spooky'. It's just enough to be intriguing but with no gruesome stuff. It is like you say, fast paced with appealing characters. You should try some of her murder mysteries if you have not yet.

Oh this does sound like a nice Halloween treat and I've never read any of her books. I get in the mood for murder mysteries this time of the year. Sounds like the setting and activities for this one will provide some nice atmosphere.

Donna, your new book A Newly Crimsoned Reliquary looks really good. I love books set in the UK and have wanted to read your books for some time. You have a wonderful reputation for great writing and excellent research. I can't wait. Hopefully this giveaway will get me started.CocoIhle(at)gmail(dot)com